i am trying to figure out a way i can add either of these screens to my project even with it already being stacked with other shields.
This is the current setup:
Arduino Mega2560;
Arduino wifi101; Wifi101
ADAFRUIT MOTOR/STEPPER/SERVO SHIELD; MOTOR/STEPPER/SERVO
OSEPP Sensor Shield; Sensor Shield
New Hardware i would like to use if possible(could be either of these. otherwise, advice on what would work would be appreciated.)
I'm not to concerned with having to use a breadboard if needed as it will be in a mounting box.
i have included a picture of the housing just to give you an idea. Housing picture
Cannot see an easy way to connect a tft screen as it needs the end socket on the 2560 board plus 2 of the other side sockets.
Same with the lcd shield, are the lines it uses free or have the others shield allocated them ?
For both, if you have access to some unused pins then you might be able to wire them up.
Seems you have some free sockets showing on the 2560 so I would see if you can use them with a 16x2 lcd I2C type or a standard lcd with an I2C adaptor so you only have 2 lines to connect instead of parallel interface of 6/7 lines,
A simple 1 pin 'ladder' keyboard can be made as that lcd shield schematic shows.
I agree with the I2C recommendation. It looks like those lines are exposed on your mega, so you could just use jumper wires to plug into an I2C LCD converter.
Something like this LCD display already has I2C control built in and has the keypad functionality. I don't thing the TFT touch display would work with the I2C converter... that thing has a ton of pins!
Or if you want things to be more secure, I've used the Mega proto shield and soldered everything in place. The Mega proto shield is extremely tight once you seat it, so no worries about it shaking loose or anything. It's actually pretty difficult to remove, even when trying to do so intentionally.
many thanks, i kind of figured that i wouldn't be able to use the tft with this just because of the 40 pin interface. and i've come to the conclusion that i don't really need the keypad at this stage since i can have the display rotate what is being displayed on it's own.
i have decided to go with the i2c interface since the pinout's 20 and 21 on my mega2560 are open and since i don't plan on trying to stack it, it makes it even easier.
just one quick question though, would this one work as a subsitute to the one you posted that had everything built in? SainSmart IIC/I2C/TWI Serial 2004 20x4 LCD Module Shield
it appears that this is the same thing, just from sainsmart.